Western Railroad Discussion > CNW SD40-2 6800 series paint scheme question.

In the early 1990's were the CNW 6800 series SD40-2's in Zito yellow, "New" old yellow, or both?

TIA,

S. Kline

Here's 6868 and 6813 both in Zito yellow, leading a westbound UP freight in the siding at Spadra (Pomona), CA in March of 1996 - a long way from their former home.

Rich

---

You could find them in all 3 shades of cnw yellow. Old Yellow Safety Yellow and Traditional Yellow.
JC

JC,

I am not up on CNW paint. What exactly are the three shades of paint used. I have heard of Zito yellow, Old yellow, and "New" old yellow. Are these correct?

S. Kline

Technically, the traditional CNW yellow was known as "Stagecoach" yellow, IIRC.

CNW historical society may have that info:
http://www.cnwhs.org/index.htm

chico
http://www.heartlandrails.com

osp1729 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> JC,
>
> I am not up on CNW paint. What exactly are the
> three shades of paint used. I have heard of Zito
> yellow, Old yellow, and "New" old yellow. Are
> these correct?
>
> S. Kline
..

The correct terms for the shades of yellow are as I mentioned above. Old Yellow was the shade applied to locomotives before the mid 80,s. Then came along Safety Yellow which was a brighter yellow for improved visibility for motorist at crossings also known as Zito Yellow for the man who was president of the CNW at the time, this was first applied to the brand new SD50 SD60 and C40-8 loco's. Problem was this was lead free paint per the EPA and it quickly faded on the dash-8's and turned the paint chalky white in appearance.

Traditional Yellow came out in the early 90's and was applied to the new orders of dash-8's dash-9's and the C44AC's. It had a glossier coat then old yellow plus it was standard with 3M reflective striping and on some units Operation Lifesaver decals. Then of course there where some slight variations to the paint schemes. Some units either did or did not have CNW written on the nose, some had different sill striping either full, broken or none at all. And on the TY repaints some had rear number boards or where written in small yellow letters above blanked out boards.

For more detailed information on a specific loco your interested in I would recommend getting a copy of "The final CNW motive power roster Run of the GE's" should still be available from the CNW historical society. There is a list of all the units on the roster at the time of the UP takeover and in what paint scheme they where wearing. Plus a more detailed look at the variations each unit might of had.
JC

JC,

Thanks for the info. It was a big help.

S. Kline

dpthrottle Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The 135 SD40-2s (6801-6935) were built by EMD in
> several orders in the early-mid 1970s, all painted
> in "traditional CNW yellow" and "stagecoach
> green".
>
> Some of the units were repainted in the 1980s
> using the "Pantone 102C yellow" (what many
> unofficially call "Zito yellow") but still using
> the "stagecoach green".
>
> The first-2 orders of C40-8s came from GE in 1989
> and 1990 also painted "Pantone 102C yellow" and
> "stagecoach green", but when the yellow paint
> started fading and turning chalky in the
> high-altitude on the coal line, GE paid
> Mid-America Car in KC to repaint those 42 units
> using "traditional CNW yellow" (which the railroad
> had decided to revert back to). The SD50s and
> SD60s had also been delivered by EMD in "Pantone
> 102C yellow" but most were repainted in the
> "traditional" color before the merger. All of the
> Dash-9s and C44ACs bore the "original" colors from
> Erie.
>
> The "traditional CNW yellow" and "stagecoach
> green" colors dated back to the start of the "400"
> streamliner in 1940 using EMD E6s. That makes the
> two remaining CNW Dash-9s the flag bearers for a
> paint color combination which is now 70 years old.


I knew there was a stagecoach in there somewhere..

dpthrottle Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The 135 SD40-2s (6801-6935) were built by EMD in
> several orders in the early-mid 1970s, all painted
> in "traditional CNW yellow" and "stagecoach
> green".
>
> Some of the units were repainted in the 1980s
> using the "Pantone 102C yellow" (what many
> unofficially call "Zito yellow") but still using
> the "stagecoach green".
>
> The first-2 orders of C40-8s came from GE in 1989
> and 1990 also painted "Pantone 102C yellow" and
> "stagecoach green", but when the yellow paint
> started fading and turning chalky in the
> high-altitude on the coal line, GE paid
> Mid-America Car in KC to repaint those 42 units
> using "traditional CNW yellow" (which the railroad
> had decided to revert back to). The SD50s and
> SD60s had also been delivered by EMD in "Pantone
> 102C yellow" but most were repainted in the
> "traditional" color before the merger. All of the
> Dash-9s and C44ACs bore the "original" colors from
> Erie.
>
> The "traditional CNW yellow" and "stagecoach
> green" colors dated back to the start of the "400"
> streamliner in 1940 using EMD E6s. That makes the
> two remaining CNW Dash-9s the flag bearers for a
> paint color combination which is now 70 years old.


Minor correction only very few 50 and 60's were repainted, many kept there safety yellow when they were returned to the leaser.
JC

Jim Zito was never president of CNW--he was VP Operations. Lots of folks remember when he was a clerk at Proviso (I'm not one of them).